ILOILO City – Former Senate President Franklin Drilon on Wednesday warned against the “tyranny of the majority” after the Senate majority bloc tried to ram through amendments allowing senators to vote remotely, saying the move is directly connected to the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio and threatens the credibility and independence of the Senate.
“It is now connected to the impeachment trial,” Drilon said.
According to Drilon, the amendment could affect crucial rulings during the impeachment proceedings if senators facing detention or hiding from arrest are still allowed to vote remotely.
He cited as an example a possible subpoena involving the bank records of the Vice President.
“Halimbawa, ‘yung bank record ni Vice President. Kung humingi ng subpoena ang prosecution at hindi payagan ng presiding officer tapos i-appeal sa impeachment court, kailangan makakuha siya ng support ng majority, kaya very crucial ito kaya minamadali,” Drilon said.
He said that Sen. Erwin Tulfo is correct in calling a spade a spade when he pointed out that the amendment is meant to accommodate senators who may soon face detention over alleged plunder cases.
“This is ugly. I have never seen this kind of bastusan in the history of the Senate,” Drilon said.” “This is malicious and grave abuse of discretion I have never seen in the history of the Senate. It must be condemned.”
“Patay na ang malayang diskurso sa Senado,” Drilon declared.
The proposed amendment was first presented on May 11, but Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri objected, prompting Senate PresidentAlan Peter Cayetano to say that the matter would first be studied by the Committee on Rules.
However, Drilon said that during Tuesday’s session, May 26, Sen. Rodante Marcoleta moved to have the amendment approved despite the Rules Committee not yet being formally constituted.
“The minority objected on the ground that the amendment had already been referred to the Committee on Rules which had not yet been constituted,” said Drilon.
The majority, particularly Senate President Cayetano, insisted that the amendment could still be taken up under Section 136, paragraph 2 of the Senate Rules and not through a formal committee report.
Cayetano then asked for a division of the house to determine whether the body could take up the amendment.
While the division of the house, as proposed by Cayetano, was supposed to determine only the propriety of taking up the amendment, not yet the motion to approve the amendment itself, “things could still get uglier” so the minority walked out to prevent the majority from “ramming the amendment down their throats,” said Drilon.
“Sa aming kasaysayan, ito ay tyranny of the majority,” Drilon said, and that the walk out “was the only way to prevent the tyranny of the majority.”/PN
